Saturday, March 10, 2012

DTN News - KOREAN PENINSULA NEWS: Clinton Cautiously Hails North Korea Food Aid DealSource: DTN News - - This article compiled by Roger Smith from reliable sources CNN(NSI News Source Info) TORONTO, Canada - March 10, 2012: North Korea's agreement to halt portions of its nuclear and missile programs and accept the return of nuclear inspectors is a "modest step in the right direction," U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said Friday.Clinton said, however, that the United States will be watching North Korea closely and judging the country's leaders by their actions in the coming weeks and months.

North Korea last week announced it would freeze its nuclear and missile tests, along with uranium enrichment programs, and allow the return of U.N. nuclear inspectors in exchange for 240,000 metric tons of food aid from the United States.North Korea has suffered famines and widespread malnutrition during the past two decades -- thanks to its dysfunctional economy and international sanctions. Other countries and international groups have repeatedly stepped in with food aid to alleviate the situation.The United States suspended shipments of food aid to North Korea in 2009 amid tensions over Pyongyang's nuclear program and concerns that the supplies were not reaching those most in need.Clinton spoke after meeting in Washington with South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan, who called the North Korean agreement "a meaningful first step" toward resolving the North Korean nuclear issue.Kim said "faithful implementation" of the measures to which North Korea agreed -- the moratorium on nuclear activities and the return of the inspectors -- was important going forward.The timing of the food aid is unclear.Robert King, the U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights issues, said the administrative details have been resolved, but officials are still working on details.King, who on Thursday wrapped up two days of talks with officials from Pyongyang, said he is optimistic that the food aid will find its way to those in need in North Korea.The initial deal last week to resume the deliveries came after the the two countries revived negotiations that had stalled after the death in December of the longtime North Korean leader Kim Jong Il.The talks this week were intended to finalize points like what ports will be used to dock incoming ships, how the distribution of the food will be monitored and which nongovernmental organizations will be involved.U.S. officials cautiously welcomed the agreement last week in hopes of a new era in relations with North Korea and a resumption of multilateral talks aimed at the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula.But Pyongyang has stepped up its rhetoric against the South Korean president, Lee Myung-bak, and his government since Kim Jong Un took over from his father, Kim Jong Il, as North Korean leader.Earlier this week, North Korean television aired footage of a military unit carrying out live-fire drills in sight of a South Korean island.It showed tanks repositioning and an artillery machine being prepared, overlooking waters that have seen a number of violent incidents over the years.Li Gum-chol, a North Korean deputy commander, threatened to engulf Seoul in a "sea of flames" in retaliation for U.S.-South Korean joint military drills taking place on the peninsula. North Korea has condemned the annual drills as provocation.

STORY HIGHLIGHTS

Clinton calls it a "step in the right direction"

North Korea agreed last week to halt missile tests and nuclear activities

Residents of southern Israel were still under fire Saturday evening, as terrorists continued to launch rockets from the Gaza Strip. Five Qassam rockets exploded in open areas in the Eshkol Regional Council. No injuries or damage were reported.

An IDF spokesman said that IAF aircraft hit a weapons storage facility in the northern Gaza Strip. The strike came in response to earlier rocket barrages fired from Gaza. According to the statement, the target was hit directly.

"Hamas, which uses the other groups to carry out acts of terror against the State of Israel, will be held responsible for any future operation that the IDF choose to launch in order to eliminate the threat of terror and restore relative calm to the region," the IDF statement read.

Around 8:20 pm two rockets were fired toward Ashdod and Ashkelon; both were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system. Shrapnel hit a house in Ashkelon but no injuries were reported.

Watch IAF strike weapons factory in Gaza

Two hours earlier the Color Red alert sounded in Ashdod and the Gan Yavne area. The rockets apparently exploded in open fields.

Earlier on Saturday, IDF officials expressed satisfaction over the outcome of IAF airstrikes in the Gaza Strip, which killed 15Palestinian terrorists, but noted that a terror alert was still in effect, following intelligence suggesting that terrorists from Gaza were planning to cross into the Sinai Peninsula and infiltrate Israel in order to carry out an attack.

IDF Spokesman Brigadier General Yoav Mordechai said that the military decided to target the terror cell because they were planning an attack similar to that carried out in August near the southern city of Eilat.

Mordechai noted that despite the successful operation, "Some of the cell members are still alive and can carry out the attack."

The IDF spokesman said that a total of 100 rockets were launched from the Gaza Strip towards Israel since Friday, out of which about 30 were intercepted by the Iron Dome missile defense system.

"Rockets with a range of 40km or more were fired from the Strip by the Islamic Jihad, while the shorter range rockets were launched by PRC terrorists," he said. The spokesman added that the rockets fired towards Ashdod and Ashkelon originated from the northern Gaza Strip, while rockets directed at Ofakim and Beersheba came from the central part, and rockets hitting Gaza vicinity communities were fired from the southern part of the Strip.

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Watch rocket launcher hit in IAF strike

A total of 13 rockets were fired at Gan Yavne and Ashdod, out of which 11 were intercepted. Five rockets were fired at Ashkelon, out of which one was intercepted. Out of 17 rockets fired toward Beersheba, 15 were intercepted.

All of the rockets that were not intercepted exploded in open areas. Four foreign workers from Thailand were injured in Eshkol Regional Council while working in an open field. One suffered serious injuries while the others were lightly wounded.

Earlier Saturday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with the heads of the southern regional councils and expressed his support.

Internal Security Minister Yitzhak Aharonovitch visited in the south and told residents: "We will continue to act against those who try to harm the State of Israel. Israel will continue to protect its citizens at all times, in all places. Israel is not interested in escalation, but will continue to thwart terrorist activity in the Gaza Strip."

Watch Iron Dome intercept rockets

Since Friday, the IDF attacked 10 terrorist cells that were launching rockets toward Israel, killing 15 terrorists. In addition to Zuhir al-Qaisi, the secretary-general of the Popular Resistance Committees terror group, targets included two top Islamic Jihad terrorists.

The IDF Spokesperson's Unit reported direct hits in all the airstrikes, stressing that no innocent civilians were hurt during the attacks.